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Sun Gold Farm
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Fresh from Sun Gold Farm
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The transition from dairying to a completely new farming adventure was uncharted for us, but exciting. The farm changed from conventional practices and cooperative marketing to natural, chemical free practices and direct marketing. Fortunately, we knew our soils and what they would grow, so the new methods and crops we chose were rewarding from the start. Marketing was our challenge. But because we are lucky enough to have a farm in one of the most fertile valleys in the country, and are situated very near to a population which strives to eat healthy and local, we were able to make a successful change in farming. Our farm market customers and CSA members make our way of farming and land preservation possible, and not a day goes by that we do not feel blessed! On the farm this month we are working in the blueberries and orchard. This is the best time of the year for pruning and mulching. Seeds have been ordered and should be arriving any day now. New varieties this next season include a new type of broccoli raab, the return of edamame, celeriac, a new deep purple tomato, and Chioggia beets. The best part of our winters these days is the anticipation of a new growing season. Our New Year's celebration consists of discussions of last season's successes and failures, and the great plans we have for the 2012 harvest season! We are excited to again have Katherine Deumling of "Cook With What You Have" fame again on our team. Our weekly newsletter from the farm will include special recipes specifically conjured up from the ingredients in the share. Katherine makes it easy, interesting, and delicious! The 2012 sign up period has begun and will continue until all memberships are sold. We cannot give you an exact deadline for your applications. Historically we have been sold out as early as mid-March. Please visit our website for more information. We are now set up to take credit cards, both online and in person! We are set up with Paypal on our website, and will now be set up to take cards at any markets or promoting venues. You can also sign up the old fashioned way by printing out a form and mailing it to us with a check or money order. The price this year $420 for the season. We will again have an Open Farm Day in early June, weather permitting. (I am sure most of you remember our beautiful rainy, muddy month of June in 2010 and 2011!) Honey shares will again be available for a once-a-month delivery, with the exception of the Intel pick-up sites. (Those Intel folks who would like to purchase our farm's honey, please email us seperately for options.) There are also a few changes in pick up sites. We have added the Woodstock Farmer's Market as a Sunday pick-up site. We have the understanding that the market has extended it's season this year to cover our CSA season, though it's not final. Also, Intel has a new pick-up site, that being the Aloha campus. As that campus has expanded in the last year, many of our members moved there. Happy New Year from our family to yours! Charlie and Vicki, and family at Sun Gold Farm 
Several projects are going on simultaneously this month. Greg keeps the shop humming all winter. Currently he is finishing "remodeling" an old ice cream truck into a hay delivery truck with a hydraulic hoist. He also brings all of our field equipment into the shop one at a time to repair and prepare for next season. We always know where to find Greg this time of year! Chris stays busy with his new, beautiful daughter. He also has maintained his French Horn chair in the Beaverton Symphony Orchestra. He and Ellen have moved to a house in Forest Grove that is just seven minutes from the farm! He will have a short rest before starting propogation in the greenhouses in February. Stephanie keeps occupied with the bookwork and scheduling all winter long. Her two daughters keep her busier than ever with trips to Joey's little school in Verboort and pony lessons at a neighboring stable. Joey is becoming quite capable with her little spotted steed, "Lacey". Rachel just received her first pair of cowgirl boots (in pink, of course), so she plans on taking Lacey out for a test ride soon! Chuy is busy pruning trees and tending to the perennial nursery stock while it is dormant. He will mulch the
blueberry field this winter - a huge job that is done every other year. He has a natural talent with plants and we are
lucky he has chosen to work for so many years. The weather so far this fall has been a little too kind. Part of our farm is a natural flood plain and has usually flooded by this time. So far this season Dairy Creek is only half full, so we are actually hoping for a lot more rain soon. A good, hard freeze would relieve the farm of many bad insects - a natural pesticide! Even as we try to take a few days off for a winter vacation, it is necessary to lay plans for next season. The farm is very fortunate to have an extensive list of new families waiting for a share in 2012. We will open sales on January 2. Stephanie will be handling the sign up details and will contact everyone soon. Our family wishes all of you a wonderful and peaceful holiday season! Charlie, Vicki, Chris, Stephanie, and the rest of the family at Sun Gold Farm
It is amazing that our modern Thanksgiving dinner menu still follows the original so closely. It is the perfect holiday for all of us to eat locally and seasonally, and to be thankful that we live in such a beautiful, fertile valley. We hope your family enjoys your special Thanksgiving share of the harvest as much as our family has enjoyed growing and gathering it for you! Happy turkey day! The family at Sun Gold Farm
These nocturnal animals eat mainly insects and hunt in flight, eating mainly moths, mosquitoes, flies, and beetles. The bats either snatch the insect with their jaws or scoop them into their wings and then bring them to their mouth. They consume 50% or more of their body weight in insects each night in the summer. That would be the same as a 150 lb person eating 75 lbs of food or more a day! Their food is chewed very rapidly and have been observed catching fruit flies at a rate of 10 per minute. The effectiveness of bats in some areas diminishes the need for pesticides that can harm both the pests and their natural predators. Bats are important indicators of a healthy environment. Because they are sensitive to high pollution and pesticide levels, they are useful as a warning sign to potential environmental problems. It was noticed last winter that our bats were absent from their roost in the shed. Little brown bats migrate south in October or November, just like most birds do. Like our favorite bird, the swallow, each bat returns to the same place every summer and winter. They gather in colonies in the summer and hibernate on their own in the winter. Little brown bats have been reported to live to be up to 33 years old. And we thought they were just creepy little mammals! On the farm this time of year we are still harvesting a few carrots, cabbage, beets, and broccoli from the fields. We will finish the walnut harvest this week and dry them in the greenhouses. They should be ready for the Thanksgiving shares! Twenty-five acres of cover crop is seeded and ready to hold the soil through the winter months and add needed nutrients for next season's crops. We are starting to gather materials for our holiday wreaths and swags. This week we will finish putting wires on the beautiful pine cones that have been collected and soon we will "trimming" our trees for greens. The seasons seem to change quickly here on the farm - each bringing new chores and excitement. There are still about ten Thanksgiving shares available if you have not yet got around to ordering yours. Visit our website for more info and an application. This Halloween we have two angels and a lady bug in our family! Enjoy your Halloween activities, and be safe! The Sun Gold Farm family |
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